Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) Hits New 1-Year Low on Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on the stock from $21.00 to $20.15. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Annaly Capital Management traded as low as $17.08 and last traded at $17.19, with a volume of 2564086 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $17.85.

A number of other research firms have also commented on NLY. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Monday, January 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $19.00 price target on the stock. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Annaly Capital Management from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.29.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Annaly Capital Management

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NLY. Assetmark Inc. bought a new position in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 78.5% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,630 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 34.4% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 549 shares in the last quarter. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 29.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,425 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 549 shares in the last quarter. 51.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Annaly Capital Management Trading Down 3.4 %

The company has a market capitalization of $9.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.81, a P/E/G ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.31. The company’s fifty day moving average is $20.92 and its 200 day moving average is $19.97.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.05. Annaly Capital Management had a return on equity of 14.95% and a net margin of 20.70%. Equities research analysts predict that Annaly Capital Management, Inc. will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Annaly Capital Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 16.24%. This is an increase from Annaly Capital Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently 176.10%.

Annaly Capital Management Company Profile

Annaly Capital Management, Inc, a diversified capital manager, engages in mortgage finance. The company invests in agency mortgage-backed securities collateralized by residential mortgages; non-agency residential whole loans and securitized products within the residential and commercial markets; mortgage servicing rights; agency commercial mortgage-backed securities; to-be-announced forward contracts; residential mortgage loans; and agency or private label credit risk transfer securities.